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GIS and Environmental Planning Intern 

Location: [Charlotte, NC / Hybrid / Remote within North Carolina] 
Schedule: Part-time, approximately 10–20 hours per week 
Compensation: [$15-$20 per hour]

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About Key Environmental Consulting 

Key Environmental Consulting (KEC) is a consulting firm that uses GIS, data analysis, and community-informed planning to address challenges affecting the built and natural environments. Our work includes environmental analysis, transportation and infrastructure planning, climate resilience, community engagement, and decision-support mapping for public- and private-sector clients. 

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Position Summary 

KEC is seeking a detail-oriented GIS and Environmental Planning Intern to support a range of environmental, transportation, infrastructure, and community planning assignments. The intern will primarily assist with desktop GIS analysis, spatial data management, map production, research, and quality control. 

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Potential assignments may include evaluating environmental conditions surrounding transportation facilities, developing repeatable GIS-based screening methods, reviewing infrastructure asset data, and preparing maps and analytical products that support planning and design decisions. 

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This position is well suited for a student or recent graduate seeking practical experience applying GIS to environmental planning, transportation, climate resilience, and public infrastructure. 

 

Potential Responsibilities 

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GIS and Environmental Planning 

  • Compile, organize, and analyze spatial data from local, state, and federal sources. 

  • Evaluate environmental and site conditions such as tree canopy, vegetation, land cover, impervious surfaces, heat exposure, flood risk, drainage, roadway proximity, and surrounding land uses. 

  • Assist with developing GIS-based screening methods, scoring systems, checklists, and decision-support tools. 

  • Conduct spatial analyses using buffers, overlays, spatial joins, proximity analysis, and other geoprocessing techniques. 

  • Prepare clear maps, tables, graphics, and location-specific summaries. 

  • Research environmental planning practices, technical standards, and approaches used by municipalities and public agencies. 

  • Document data sources, analytical methods, assumptions, limitations, and recommended updates. 

  • Assist with limited site observations or field verification when conditions cannot be confirmed through desktop analysis. 

  • Support the preparation of technical memoranda, presentations, reports, and other client deliverables. 

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Transportation and Infrastructure Data 

Depending on project needs, the intern may also: 

  • Organize, review, and edit transportation and infrastructure data in Esri geodatabases. 

  • Assist with inventories of transportation assets such as signs, pavement markings, sidewalks, curb and gutter, guardrails, pavement conditions, and other roadside features. 

  • Review records for missing attributes, inconsistent classifications, invalid values, duplicate features, and potential location errors. 

  • Compare GIS data with aerial imagery, street-level imagery, photographs, and other reference information. 

  • Verify that feature classes and attribute fields conform to established data schemas and coded-value domains. 

  • Perform spatial and attribute quality assurance and quality control. 

  • Help prepare metadata, data dictionaries, map products, and project documentation. 

  • Assist with preparing GIS data for integration into infrastructure asset-management systems. 

  • Support occasional field data collection or verification using mobile GIS applications, if needed. 

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Required Qualifications 

  • Current enrollment in or recent completion of a degree or certificate program in GIS, geography, environmental science, urban or regional planning, transportation planning, geospatial technology, civil engineering, or a related field. 

  • Experience using ArcGIS Pro through coursework, research, employment, or independent projects. 

  • Understanding of fundamental GIS concepts, including coordinate systems, geodatabases, spatial joins, buffers, overlays, and attribute tables. 

  • Ability to organize and evaluate spatial and tabular data carefully. 

  • Strong attention to detail and an interest in GIS quality assurance and quality control. 

  • Ability to communicate analytical findings through maps, tables, graphics, and concise written summaries. 

  • Ability to work independently, document completed work, and meet agreed-upon deadlines. 

  • Interest in environmental planning, transportation, climate resilience, or public infrastructure. 

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Preferred Qualifications 

  • Experience with ArcGIS Online, Field Maps, Survey123, Experience Builder, or other web and mobile GIS applications. 

  • Familiarity with environmental datasets related to tree canopy, land-surface temperature, flooding, land cover, transportation, or community characteristics. 

  • Experience creating or editing feature classes, geodatabases, coded-value domains, or metadata. 

  • Familiarity with Python, ArcPy, ModelBuilder, SQL, or other tools used to automate GIS workflows. 

  • Experience conducting field observations, collecting GPS data, or interpreting aerial and street-level imagery. 

  • Familiarity with transportation infrastructure or municipal asset-management data. 

  • Knowledge of Charlotte, Mecklenburg County, or other North Carolina communities. 

  • Ability to produce visually clear and professional maps and presentation graphics. 

 

Professional Development Opportunities 

The selected intern will gain practical experience in: 

  • Applying GIS to active environmental and infrastructure planning assignments. 

  • Developing repeatable spatial screening and decision-support methods. 

  • Evaluating environmental conditions that affect transportation facilities and infrastructure. 

  • Working with municipal asset data, geodatabases, and data schemas. 

  • Performing GIS quality-control and documentation tasks. 

  • Translating technical analysis into useful information for planners, designers, and public-sector decision-makers. 

  • Contributing to professional reports, maps, presentations, and client deliverables. 

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How to Apply 

Please submit the following to info@keyenvi.com: 

  • Resume 

  • Brief statement describing your interest in the position 

  • Unofficial transcript or list of relevant coursework 

  • One or two examples of GIS work, such as maps, dashboards, class projects, story maps, or portfolio links

 

Please use “GIS and Environmental Planning Intern” in the email subject line.  

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Key Environmental Consulting provides equal employment opportunities to all applicants and employees. Applicants will be considered without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, disability, veteran status, or any other status protected by applicable law. 

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Applicants must be legally authorized to work in the United States and should not require, now or in the future, sponsorship for employment visa status. 

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